HÀ NỘI — Minister of Natural Resources and Environment Trần Hồng Hà on Thursday ordered the Taiwanese Hưng Nghiệp Formosa Hà Tĩnh Steel Company to raise fish in its tank containing treated wastewater.

Hà made the instruction on a visit to the company’s premises to check how it treated and released wastewater, two months after the Formosa committed to seriously following regulations on environmental protection to avoid disasters like the one that killed tonnes of fish in four central coastal provinces in early April.

Hà said the company must seriously address 58 violations of regulations on environmental protection.

At the meeting with Hà, the company chairman Chen Yuan Cheng once again apologised for the environmental disaster.

Chen said the company had built two tanks with a capacity of 10,000cu.m. each to treat biochemical wastewater and another two tanks of 50,000cum. each to treat industrial wastewater.

It had also installed an aquarium to raise fish in treated industrial wastewater, he added.

Formosa signed contracts with the Hoành Sơn Waste Treatment Co Ltd and the Phú Hà Environment Co Ltd for transporting and treating solid hazardous waste following the current regulations on environmental protection.

The company had constructed 16 warehouses to hold solid hazardous waste before it was treated. Currently, the company discharges some 200-220 tonnes of solid hazardous waste daily, according to a vnexpress report.

To monitor the quality of fumes, nine devices had been installed, he said.

Lê Hà Sơn, secretary of the province’s Party Committee, said the locality’s view was that an economic project could only be implemented if the environment was protected.

Sơn asked the environment ministry to support the company to address issues dealing with waste, especially solid waste.

Minister Hà said people from all walks of life were aware of the environmental disaster. Therefore, Formosa had to fix these issues to regain the trust of the people.

Only when all the violations were successfully addressed, could the company resume operations, he said. — VNS